Thanks very much. I knew I was 5 days short, I just for once had some free time to finish the application and didn’t expect you to be done with the process so quickly! 

Thanks again for your quick action, I’ll standby to hear from you next week. 

​Regards,

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Hello AIBD Folks! 

I am Mark O. Nardini A.I.A..  I used to be Mark O. Nardini A.I.B.D.  I am a past Co-founder, Secretary, Treasurer, Vice President and President of the Alaska Chapter of A.I.B.D..  I also was a National Executive Committee Board Member & National Executive Committee -Alaska Director at Large.   

I would like to renew / reinstate my professional certified A.I.B.D. membership.  

Why?   Because Architects are no longer Architects.  The Practice of Architecture, as well as, the Education of Architects has evolved from Design being the main focus and priority of Architecture to...Architectural Business Administration and Project Management.  Design Development and Construction Documents processing has been dissected into an Assembly Line process.   Project Architects now act a Design Team Managers and Supervisors of the Almighty Budget.  Graduate Architects are minimally educated in Building Design with little or no education in Structural Design, Materials and Methods, Building Codes, Zoning Land Use Regulations.   These days it's all about Liability and the avoidance of Liability.  Construction documents are organized and designed to acquire Building permits and are loaded with building codes and zoning Legalese.  The actual construction information needed to build structures is camouflaged within the Permit Check List requirements.   Worst of all...Architects are producing black and white line drawings reminiscent of the 1950's Construction Documents.   

I joined AIBD back in 1975.  I was warmly welcomed at the 1978 New Port Beach, California National AIBD Convention.  I learned a wealth of information about Building Design, Presentation Formats, Building Plans by observing and competing with them.  Every single designer that I met was open to sharing their design knowledge, experiences and business tips and philosophies.  But BEST OF ALL...the Greatest Education of All...IT THE DESIGN COMPETITION.  

Seeing the latest innovations in Building Design, Competition Presentations and Building Plans from Absolutely the Best Designers from all over the United States..."PRICELESS"  

And even better yet...!!! By competing in Design Competitions, I learned if I was any good and how I stand in the Design Community.  

There is more...oh so much more that I want to give back to and learn from young AIBD Designers.   I would very much like to attend the next National Convention as an A.I.B.D. Designer that has come full circle. 

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I wanted to tell you: because a recent Coffee With Bernie's topic was "using QR codes on your drawings", I've been motivated to figure out how to do that even though I missed the meeting.  For the first time, I've been putting QR codes for the installation of Aeratis flooring, Kerdi shower pans, and Westbury Screenrail panels on this set of plans I'm working on.  The builder is elated.  He had no idea this was possible either!  He said his younger workers, especially, will take advantage of the convenient way to access installation PDFs in the field with their phones.  So, that's all thanks to AIBD.

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 I wanted to reach out to share a few concerns I had about the recent issue of the AIBD Magazine. I do understand that using AI is pretty common these days. I personally use AI myself for quite a few things and I do find it very helpful. My issues are not with AI itself. 

I find it concerning that the cover image appears AI-assisted or at least visually ambiguous to me and there is no attribution for the design or imagery. The article reads heavily AI-assisted as well. With all of the talent in AIBD, there has to be plenty of real designs that could be showcased. I would find it more interesting as a reader read about a real-life designer, their work, and what inspires them. 

Most of the articles read to me as heavily AI-assisted. It is not clear who wrote them and many of the images appear to be AI generated. 

In the concept image of the featured home plan, the rear chimney off of the patio appears to be too low and not far enough away from the home. It is also odd to have a chimney penetrate the roof like that on the edge. I understand that renderings can introduce inaccuracies depending on how they were generated. When a spotlight image appears to show potentially non-compliant conditions, it can be a bad look.

I do understand that staff is thin and it can be difficult to accomplish things with limited resources. I am willing to help with writing, photography, or with other content ideas for the magazine. Adding some more help with content, editorial review and contributions could go a long way.

The recent IBS event would have been a great source for an article and more in-depth feature beyond some photos. I imagine members who attended would have gladly contributed an article or recap if given a heads-up. 

I’m only sharing this because I care about AIBD and think the magazine could be much stronger and more reflective of the talent within the organization.